fairway / wake
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fairway
The area in a body of water such as a river, canal, or the sea that is deep enough and safe for shipping.
Das große Containerschiff muss exakt im Fahrwasser navigieren, um nicht auf Grund zu laufen.
The large container ship has to navigate exactly within the fairway so it does not run aground.
to get back on track
To get into, or be brought into, a stable, successful, or normal situation.
Nach einem schwierigen Start ist das Unternehmen nun wieder im richtigen Fahrwasser.
After a difficult start, the company is now back on the right track.
to fall into someone's wake
To come under another person's influence and adopt their ideas or behavior.
Der junge Politiker ist schnell in das Fahrwasser seines berühmten Mentors geraten.
The young politician quickly fell into the wake of his famous mentor.
'Fahrwasser' (fairway) is made up of the stem of the verb 'fahren' (to drive/travel/go) and the noun 'das Wasser' (water). So it literally describes the water in which ships can travel. The gender 'das' comes from 'das Wasser'.
Der Lotse führte das Schiff sicher durch das enge Fahrwasser.
The pilot guided the ship safely through the narrow fairway.
The literal meaning of 'Fahrwasser' (fairway) is used in the context of shipping. You can recognize the figurative, idiomatic meanings by the fact that they refer to people, companies, or abstract situations.
Das Schiff verließ das markierte Fahrwasser.
The ship left the marked fairway.
The expression 'ins richtige/ruhige Fahrwasser kommen' means that a difficult situation stabilizes. You can also 'eine Person oder ein Projekt ins richtige Fahrwasser bringen' (get a person or project back on the right track).
Mit dem neuen Management kam das Projekt endlich ins richtige Fahrwasser.
With the new management, the project finally got back on the right track.
The expression 'in jemandes Fahrwasser geraten' or 'sich in jemandes Fahrwasser befinden' means to be strongly influenced by another person and to follow their course. Pay attention to the possessive pronoun (seinem, ihrem, etc.).
Er bewunderte seinen Chef so sehr, dass er völlig in dessen Fahrwasser geriet.
He admired his boss so much that he completely fell into his wake.
